Luis Zapata attempts to move the ball down field as he is pressured by Kohei Yamada during Rapids practice on March 1.

It’s a giant chore to get players to hop from one country to the U.S. — between government permits, FIFA rules and national federations, the paperwork is a lot of work.

And the Rapids, who added four international players during the offseason, are buried in transfers. So much so, that three of those players might not be eligible for Saturday’s MLS season-opening game against Columbus in Commerce City.

Martin Rivero (Argentina), Luis Zapata (Colombia) and Kohei Yamada (Japan) are still without the necessary International Transfer Certificate each of them need to be roster eligible in MLS, the Rapids said Wednesday. The team is still waiting for the return of those certificates from the players’ previous federations.

Daniel was first introduced to soccer at age 6 while living in Düsseldorf, West Germany. He played youth soccer in West Germany until age 9, and then in Seattle, where he is originally from. He works as the day breaking news editor and also contributes on the Rapids beat.